Steve, if a word is used in a certain way by journalists and other people including the ones i have quoted, it takes on that meaning through usage.
you can carry on denying it, but it does not alter the fact that many people [including lots of journalists] use it in that particular way, and it means that through usage patriotism takes on a meaning through its usage as a word.
toilet is an example of another word that through its usage means a place where people shit and piss rather than just a washing place, its meaning gets altered through its usage, the correct term for a shitting and pissing room is a water closet, but people use the term toilet, so the word toilet through its usage means more than just a washing room.